Head to Head Survey: Tantech (NASDAQ:TANH) & Cabot (NYSE:CBT)

Cabot (NYSE:CBT) and Tantech (NASDAQ:TANH) are both basic materials companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, risk, profitability, dividends, valuation, institutional ownership and earnings.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Cabot and Tantech”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Cabot	$3.71 billion	1.08	$331.00 million	$5.71	13.42
Tantech	$42.94 million	0.00	-$3.24 million	N/A	N/A

Cabot has higher revenue and earnings than Tantech.

Profitability

This table compares Cabot and Tantech’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Cabot	8.62%	22.82%	10.07%
Tantech	N/A	N/A	N/A

Institutional and Insider Ownership

93.2% of Cabot shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 6.0% of Tantech shares are held by institutional investors. 3.1% of Cabot shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 3.8% of Tantech shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings and price targets for Cabot and Tantech, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Cabot	1	4	1	0	2.00
Tantech	1	0	0	0	1.00

Cabot currently has a consensus target price of $73.75, suggesting a potential downside of 3.79%. Given Cabot’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Cabot is more favorable than Tantech.

Volatility and Risk

Cabot has a beta of 0.88, indicating that its stock price is 12% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Tantech has a beta of 0.7, indicating that its stock price is 30% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Cabot beats Tantech on 11 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Cabot

Cabot Corporation operates as a specialty chemicals and performance materials company. The company operates through two segments, Reinforcement Materials and Performance Chemicals. It offers reinforcing carbons that are used in tires as a rubber reinforcing agent and performance additive, as well as in industrial products, such as hoses, belts, extruded profiles, and molded goods; and engineered elastomer composites solutions. The company also provides specialty carbons for use in inks, coatings, plastics, adhesives, toners, batteries, and displays; conductive additives and fumed alumina used in lead acid and lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles; fumed silica used in adhesives, sealants, cosmetics, batteries, inks, toners, silicone elastomers, coatings, polishing slurries, and pharmaceuticals; and fumed alumina for use in various products, including inkjet media, lighting, coatings, cosmetics, and polishing slurries. In addition, it offers aerogel, a hydrophobic, silica-based particle to use in various thermal insulation and specialty chemical applications; masterbatch and conductive compound products that are used in automotive, industrial, packaging, infrastructure, agriculture, consumer products, and electronics industries; and inkjet colorants for inkjet printing applications. The company sells its products through distributors and sales representatives in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. Cabot Corporation was founded in 1882 and is headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts.

About Tantech

Tantech Holdings Ltd, together with its subsidiaries, develops and manufactures bamboo-based charcoal products for industrial energy, household cooking, heating, purification, agricultural, and cleaning applications in the People's Republic of China and internationally. The company operates in three segments: Consumer Products, Electric Vehicles, and Biodegradable Packaging. It provides pressed and formed charcoal briquettes for use in grills, incense burners, and other applications under the Algold brand. The company also offers Charcoal Doctor branded products, such as air purifiers and humidifiers, automotive accessories for air purification, underfloor humidity control products, pillows and mattresses, wardrobe deodorizers, mouse pads and wrist mats, refrigerator deodorants, charcoal toilet cleaner disks, liquid charcoal cleaners, shoe insoles, and decorative charcoal gifts. In addition, it provides bamboo vinegar, a liquid byproduct for use in disinfectants, detergents, lotions, specialized soaps, toilet cleaners, and fertilizers, as well as in various agricultural applications; and trades in charcoal products. Further, the company develops and sells electric buses, electric logistics cars, and specialty electric vehicles, such as brushless cleaning cars, electric cleaning cars, special emergency vehicles, and funeral cars; and solar cells, lithium-ion batteries, auto parts, and electric control systems. It is also involved in the biodegradable packaging and supply chain businesses, as well as provides commercial factoring services. The company was founded in 1998 and is headquartered in Lishui, the People's Republic of China.